Sunday, March 20, 2011

The Positive and the Negative

Last week Jay and I surprised the girl with a new bike with training wheels. The last bike she had was a tricycle that we sold before leaving Florida. We thought a 'big kid' bike would be a great way for her to burn off some of her spaztastic energy. But, as with all things with the girl lately, the whole thing is proving to be so much more difficult than it needs to be. Even though it has training wheels, she's scared of falling. The conditions need to be perfect for her to even consider sitting on it. She doesn't like the wind, she doesn't want to ride uphill but she's frightened about losing control going downhill. She doesn't want to be pushed but she doesn't want me to let go of her either. Needless to say, bike riding time hasn't been a lot of fun and I've basically thrown in the towel, at least for a few days.

The flip side to all this is that while we're struggling so much with the girl lately, the boy has really stepped up to the plate and has been trying so hard to just keep the peace and make everything work out. The other day I watched as he tried to convince the girl to get on her bike.He tried begging, cajoling, and reasoning with her. He patiently explained about the training wheels and reassured her that he wouldn't let her get too far ahead of him.After about 15 minutes he finally convinced her to get on and ride. She rode about three feet before sliding off the bike and running away screeching about how scared she was. The boy, still exhibiting amazing patience, told her that he wasn't going to let her play video games until she gave bike riding an honest try. She said she didn't care. Normally, I don't give the boy the authority to make those types of deals, but in this instance I'm backing him up. She's on Day Three of no video games.

Despite the fact that I live with a six year old who is desperately trying to make me crazy, I'm attempting to remain positive.

Other bits of happy include:

*Sunny days and the occasional rainbow.Although I'm never one to be lamenting all the rain, the weather here has definitely given me a greater appreciation for the sunny days we do have.

*Gardening. We don't have the space for a full fledged garden, but the girl and I planted some herbs and a few spinach plants. It felt good to get our hands dirty.

*Crafty projects. I don't have anything major in the works, just a few low-key, fun things to keep my hands busy and my mind off of the annoyances in my life.

*The latest Diary of a Wimpy Kid moviecomes out this week and our whole clan is looking forward to it. We don't go to the theatre very often but we can all agree on the Wimpy Kid.

*A visit from a friendly friend. Shortly after we moved here I became close with the woman who lived below. Because things can never go too well in my life, she soon moved to Bend, three hours away. But we've remained in contact via Facebook, she'll be in town this week for spring break, and I'm excited to see her.

Happy First Day of Spring. With all the mayhem in the world right now-both far away and closer to home, I hope you all have a few positive bits to keep you smiling.

How proud of you of The Boy?!? (And of your awesome parenting). I bet she will love him for life the way I love my big brother. (He saved me from drowning three times according to Mum. Not sure what she was doing at the time!)

I really hated teaching my kids to ride a bike. I have a scar on my knee I got when trying to help my daughter. Your son sounds like a real peach for being so helpful. He gets a big pat on the back from me (I'm not sure my boys would have helped their sister!).

See, this is exactly why I'm scared shitless to have another baby. Sophie is like Lucy, I know it. When she was just a few weeks old, I had to walk around with her so she could look around; otherwise, she would scream. She's ten months old and walks, talks, screams, opens cupboards, claps, waves, shakes her head and says no, throws her food, takes all her hair clips out, hats off, pulls her hair, takes our glasses off our faces, and then screams some more. Won't be long before she is taking her clothes and diapers off.

My best friend had a baby boy 10 weeks before Sophie and he has to go to physical therapy because he doesn't move. His head is flat. I'm constantly asking George, "why don't we have a baby that doesn't move and has a flat head- who lays there and smiles?" It really isn't fair. We've been trying to have another baby since S was 6 mos old. I practically have a panic attack every time we have sex when I'm ovulating. I really don't know if I want another baby! But I want S to have a sibling.

On being a stay at home moms, it would be MUCH easier for me to go back to work and leave her in daycare 9 hours a day. MUCH MUCH easier! I worked for six days and it was a dream. The lady at daycare upped Sophie's fee by $10 a day. True story. Sophie is high maintenance. I felt too guilty leaving her there. It tore my heart out. So, here we are ... gotta go clean up an orange that has been smeared all over the kitchen wall and entire high chair. The floor is even better. ;)

victoria: completely off topic here, but will you send me a link to your other blog, the 'secret' one (if its still up). i cant remember how to get to it and i didnt want to leave a comment on your real blog for fear your MIL would see it.

Kudos to your boy. It's amazing how the other kid can sometimes step up and do a better job of talking sense. Not that you weren't talking sense...but I find that there are rare and fleeting moments when my children can reason with each other better than I can.

We have to go see the new Wimpy movie. Although I fear getting the "cheese touch" for another six months straight. For some reason, it really bothers me and I can't wait to give it to someone else.

Got your comment and replied. I think I'm going to add a new post as well. I've been thinking about them a lot lately and have been a little too upset about the whole thing again. of course, there are always new dramatic updates when it comes to his mother. comments, phone calls .. just bizarre behavior all the way around. :-/

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